It was during the start of the 20th Century when the first lift trucks were introduced. These equipment over the last 90 plus years has revolutionized the material handling business and even the recycling business. The considerations for safe operation, the lift truck's evolution and the various different types are discussed below.
History of Forklifts
Powered industrial trucks are also referred to as lift trucks and forklifts, were initially launched and created during the late 19th Century. These initial units were low lift trucks that could raise platforms only several inches high. Usually, these kinds of equipment were utilized for transporting supplies in a shop, such as work-in-progress situations. During the late 1910s, high lift trucks first emerged and enhancements in truck design started to take root from there. The tier trucks ultimately developed and this allowed for better storage efficiency and stacking of loads.
There were extremely hard economic times during the 1930s. Nevertheless, during this time, labor was freely available but capital for investment was more and more difficult to come by. This situation really slowed the growth of lift truck usage.
Forklifts became a very strategic part of the the second World War war effort because the vast shortages in manpower in that time occurred as a resulting of enlistment of thousands of men. It was discovered that its driver and the forklift were extremely productive and could handle the work of numerous men. As the War progressed, numerous women drivers filled the many demands. By the time the war was over, lift trucks became a mainstay of the material handling business. They were utilized a lot in the Pacific war efforts. Some of the leftover pallets and forklifts in Australia left behind by the U.S. Military became the basis for the CHEP or Commonwealth Handling Equipment Pool, who today is known as the largest pallet pooling business in the world.
Diesel/Gasoline
There are many advantages to utilizing a gas or diesel powered engine. They are readily available around the world; they are perfect for heavy duty workloads, they deliver consistent power throughout the shift and many operators are quite familiar with the source of power.
Some of the diesel and gas engines drawbacks comprise: they need a lot more maintenance than electric models, due to the emissions they release, they are not suitable to be used indoors, there is some cost and difficulty associated to disposal of fluid and oil and they require a re-fueling station on-site if they are going to be in continuous use.